Feast Day – August 22 – Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Story of the Queenship of Mary
Pope Pius XII established this feast in 1954. But Mary’s queenship has roots in Scripture. At the Annunciation, Gabriel announced that Mary’s Son would receive the throne of David and rule forever. At the Visitation, Elizabeth calls Mary “mother of my Lord.” As in all the mysteries of Mary’s life, she is closely associated with Jesus: Her queenship is a share in Jesus’ kingship. We can also recall that in the Old Testament the mother of the king has great influence in court.
In the fourth century Saint Ephrem called Mary “Lady” and “Queen.” Later Church fathers and doctors continued to use the title. Hymns of the 11th to 13th centuries address Mary as queen: “Hail, Holy Queen,” “Hail, Queen of Heaven,” “Queen of Heaven.” The Dominican rosary and the Franciscan crown as well as numerous invocations in Mary’s litany celebrate her queenship.
The feast is a logical follow-up to the Assumption, and is now celebrated on the octave day of that feast. In his 1954 encyclical To the Queen of Heaven, Pius XII points out that Mary deserves the title because she is Mother of God, because she is closely associated as the New Eve with Jesus’ redemptive work, because of her preeminent perfection, and because of her intercessory power.
Reflection
As Saint Paul suggests in Romans 8:28–30, God has predestined human beings from all eternity to share the image of his Son. All the more was Mary predestined to be the mother of Jesus. As Jesus was to be king of all creation, Mary, in dependence on Jesus, was to be queen. All other titles to queenship derive from this eternal intention of God. As Jesus exercised his kingship on earth by serving his Father and his fellow human beings, so did Mary exercise her queenship. As the glorified Jesus remains with us as our king till the end of time (Matthew 28:20), so does Mary, who was assumed into heaven and crowned queen of heaven and earth.
//Franciscan Media//
Has Mary Ever Appeared in the United States?
There was a Marian apparition…in Wisconsin? It’s true! Discover the story below.
Adele Brise
When young Belgian immigrant Adele Brise arrived in Wisconsin with her family, she may have expected adventure, but not to witness the first approved Marian apparition in the United States.
In October 1859, while carrying grain to a mill, 28-year-old Adele experienced her first vision near the area now called New Franken. Adele saw a woman bathed in a bright light and dressed in white, a yellow sash, and a crown of stars. Unsure and frightened, Adele prayed until the vision disappeared.
Our Lady of Good Help, as described by Adele
The following Sunday, the lady appeared again on Adele’s way to Mass. Adele immediately consulted with her priest, who advised that she should ask the woman, “In the Name of God, who are you and what do you wish of me?”
Adele saw the apparition a third time on her way home from Mass the same day, and followed the priest’s instructions. Mary told her: “I am the Queen of Heaven, who prays for the conversion of sinners, and I wish you to do the same.” Our Lady then gave Adele the mission to “gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation.”
From that time onward, Adele dedicated her life to catechetical mission work. She traveled a 50-mile radius on foot to serve local families and teach children about the Catholic faith. At the site of the Marian apparition, Adele’s father built a small twelve-foot chapel, where many pilgrims visited and prayed for Our Lady’s intercession.
Twelve years after Adele first encountered the Blessed Mother, a great drought beset the Midwest. This drought caused the Peshtigo Fire, the worst recorded fire in U.S. history. As the fire approached Robinsonville, local families that Adele had served came together at the chapel grounds with their children and livestock to pray the Rosary, beseeching Our Lady to ask Jesus to save them. They prayed through the night—and while the fire destroyed the surrounding land, the chapel area and all who had gathered there remained untouched.
This became the first of many miraculous occurrences through Our Lady of Good Help’s intercession.
The National Shrine today
In 1942, a new church was constructed at the site. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Help flourished. In 2010, after much time and discernment by expert Mariologists, the Church formally pronounced Mary’s appearances to Adele as “worthy of belief.” The church constructed at the site was later designated as the National Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help, making it the first and only shrine with a Church-approved Marian apparition site in the USA.
//Catholic Company//
Meditation of the Day – When Will the Happy Time Come?
“When will the happy time come when the divine Mary will be established Mistress and Queen of all hearts, in order that she may subject them fully to the empire of her great and holy Jesus? When will souls breathe Mary as the body breathes air? When that time comes, wonderful things will happen in those lowly places where the Holy Ghost, finding His dear spouse, as it were, reproduced, in all souls, shall come in with abundance, and fill them to overflowing with His gifts, and particularly with the gift of wisdom, to work miracles of grace.”— St. Louis de Montfort, p.118-19
//The Catholic Company//
LifeKids – The Brave and Beautiful Queen
The Bible in a Year – Day 275 – Esther Becomes Queen
Fr. Mike continues reading from the book of Nehemiah as we read of the many attempts to prevent Nehemiah from doing the great work of God. We also see the events that lead to Esther being chosen as queen and the goodness she will bring even in the midst of a broken system. Today’s readings are Nehemiah 6-7, Esther 1-2, and Proverbs 21:1-4.
Click on link: https://youtu.be/mPcKNfRKj8o
